Extra seats guaranteed for Irish Cup Final

2,200 extra seats to be installed at The Oval ahead of 2nd May showpiece

The Irish Football Association have agreed to a request by Glentoran to allow the introduction of 2,200 temporary seats into Sydenham End at The Oval for the Irish Cup final next month.

The East Belfast ground’s capacity for the final has now increased to 8,200 and both clubs are now in full control of the ticket sales, rather than the initial plan of distributing through Ticketmaster.

The final, to be contested between Glentoran and Portadown, had originally been scheduled for Windsor Park in South Belfast but that has subsequently been closed due to health and safety issues.

However, a number of concerns regarding ticketing distribution and numbers now appear to have been ironed out, alongside concerns from Portadown that their fans would not be safe at the venue.

"At this minute, they have satisfied us that they will take all the necessary precautions that our supporters will be protected and we have got to take them at their word," said the Portadown assistant manager Kieran Harding, following doubts raised by Ports fans following previous incidents around the stadium – the two clubs share a fierce rivalry and there have been a number of issues involving spectator safety previously.